Whispers in the Loggia

Thursday, November 27, 2014

"In Everything, Give Thanks"

Thanksgiving? Already?

Wow, that Fall Cycle really flew. In any case, as the great Turkeyfest dawns here at home, to everybody in the States – and those celebrating abroad – may all the joy, comfort and beauty of the day and its meaning be yours, and here's hoping it flows fully into the weekend. And if you'll indulge this scribe, let me be reflective for just a moment....

God willing, you won't be hearing too much about it over the next few weeks, but next month marks a decade since these pages began their wild spree across this Wide World of Church. To be sure, it doesn't feel like ten years – more like half that – but given the looming milestone, it's been even easier than usual for the memories and experiences of the ride to come flooding back.

Of course, technology's had a role in making it all happen, but it's simply been the tool – from Day One and as long as Whispers runs, this work and the experience of it has been the gift of so many good folks, too numerous to name, who – far more than just being fellow laborers or professional acquaintances – have truly become a part of my life and who've given me the grace of being part of yours. So especially today, I'd simply be remiss to not say how much that means always, and how especially grateful I am to each and every one of you who've been part of the road, for helping me know names and faces and goodness where I'd otherwise only see a mind-numbing jumble of IP addresses... and that just for starters.

Looking across the broad sweep of all this, we've become a pretty staggering crowd. Some of you have become daily presences in my world or close to it... others, we're lucky to get a couple catch-ups a year... and others still, for one reason or another, it's been a while. Still, even on the most chaotic news-day, the greatest comfort and happiness is never in the next thing to run, but the most impactful thing of all: the words and moments shared far from this front-page that remind me of why this is worth doing in the first place, and how worse off I'd be to have gone anyplace else.

It's one of the strange realities of all this to get two questions fairly often: first, "How do you get the stuff you get?" and, often in tandem, "Why do you keep doing this?" And, well, the best explanation I've got for both is a recent morning behind the scenes – first, a longtime pillar of this readership called from a hospital bed out West in shock and asking prayers after waking up the prior day to find her leg amputated below the knee... then, a few minutes later, the e.mail pinged with a note from one of us in Europe, with the joyous news (and pictures) of his new baby.

Not to be cavalier about it, but if that sounds intense, the confluence is typical of more days in this chair than not. Still, every instance of it is a lifetime's gift. We've grieved and celebrated together – laughed often, fought sometimes, usually tended to raise hell on some front... and as it was memorably put a few weeks back, the essence of the whole scene can be found in four words: "This is the Church." All these moments that comprise its journey are never something to observe, but to live – and when you're given the chance to be part of it in all these facets (really, in all these faces), how could you ever wish for anything more?

So with that in mind, again, a million thanks and more to the unbelievable cast of characters whose friendship, witness and example make this work, and its scribe's life, the never-dull, always-blessed experience it is – God reward you real good today and always. In a particular way, though, may we be especially mindful today of those among us who are lonely or suffering, and those who are spending this feast not in comfort, but service to those who'd otherwise be going without.

Even on Thanksgiving, folks, the work continues. For the weekend, though, this guy's Turkey Days won't be in Istanbul with Francis, but close to home with the clan and friends – after a frenzied Fall run, I need it... and with a turbulent December looking to be in the cards, you might too.

Hard as it is to believe, folks, see you in Advent – 'til then, all the graces and warmth of these days to you and yours.

Tuesday, November 25, 2014

To Europe's Lawmakers, A Call For "Transcendent Human Dignity"

ADDRESS OF POPE FRANCISTO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
STRASBOURG
25 NOVEMBER 2014

Mr President and Vice Presidents,
Members of the European Parliament,
All associated with the work of this Institution,
Dear Friends,

I thank you for inviting me to address this institution which is fundamental to the life of the European Union, and for giving me this opportunity to speak, through you, to the more than five-hundred million citizens whom you represent in the twenty-eight Member States. I am especially grateful to you, Mr President, for your warm words of welcome in the name of the entire assembly.

My visit comes more than a quarter of a century after that of Pope John Paul II. Since then, much has changed throughout Europe and the world as a whole. The opposing blocs which then divided the continent in two no longer exist, and gradually the hope is being realized that "Europe, endowed with sovereign and free institutions, will one day reach the full dimensions that geography, and even more, history have given it". (1)

As the European Union has expanded, the world itself has become more complex and ever changing; increasingly interconnected and global, it has, as a consequence, become less and less "Eurocentric". Despite a larger and stronger Union, Europe seems to give the impression of being somewhat elderly and haggard, feeling less and less a protagonist in a world which frequently regards it with aloofness, mistrust and even, at times, suspicion.

In addressing you today, I would like, as a pastor, to offer a message of hope and encouragement to all the citizens of Europe.

It is a message of hope, based on the confidence that our problems can become powerful forces for unity in working to overcome all those fears which Europe – together with the entire world – is presently experiencing. It is a message of hope in the Lord, who turns evil into good and death into life.

It is a message of encouragement to return to the firm conviction of the founders of the European Union, who envisioned a future based on the capacity to work together in bridging divisions and in fostering peace and fellowship between all the peoples of this continent. At the heart of this ambitious political project was confidence in man, not so much as a citizen or an economic agent, but in man, in men and women as persons endowed with transcendent dignity.

I feel bound to stress the close bond between these two words: "dignity" and "transcendent".

"Dignity" was a pivotal concept in the process of rebuilding which followed the Second World War. Our recent past has been marked by the concern to protect human dignity, in contrast to the manifold instances of violence and discrimination which, even in Europe, took place in the course of the centuries. Recognition of the importance of human rights came about as the result of a lengthy process, entailing much suffering and sacrifice, which helped shape an awareness of the unique worth of each individual human person. This awareness was grounded not only in historical events, but above all in European thought, characterized as it is by an enriching encounter whose "distant springs are many, coming from Greece and Rome, from Celtic, Germanic and Slavic sources, and from Christianity which profoundly shaped them" (2), thus forging the very concept of the "person".

Today, the promotion of human rights is central to the commitment of the European Union to advance the dignity of the person, both within the Union and in its relations with other countries. This is an important and praiseworthy commitment, since there are still too many situations in which human beings are treated as objects whose conception, configuration and utility can be programmed, and who can then be discarded when no longer useful, due to weakness, illness or old age.

In the end, what kind of dignity is there without the possibility of freely expressing one’s thought or professing one’s religious faith? What dignity can there be without a clear juridical framework which limits the rule of force and enables the rule of law to prevail over the power of tyranny? What dignity can men and women ever enjoy if they are subjected to all types of discrimination? What dignity can a person ever hope to find when he or she lacks food and the bare essentials for survival and, worse yet, when they lack the work which confers dignity?

Promoting the dignity of the person means recognizing that he or she possesses inalienable rights which no one may take away arbitrarily, much less for the sake of economic interests.

At the same time, however, care must be taken not to fall into certain errors which can arise from a misunderstanding of the concept of human rights and from its misuse. Today there is a tendency to claim ever broader individual rights – I am tempted to say individualistic; underlying this is a conception of the human person as detached from all social and anthropological contexts, as if the person were a "monad" (μονάς), increasingly unconcerned with other surrounding "monads". The equally essential and complementary concept of duty no longer seems to be linked to such a concept of rights. As a result, the rights of the individual are upheld, without regard for the fact that each human being is part of a social context wherein his or her rights and duties are bound up with those of others and with the common good of society itself.

I believe, therefore, that it is vital to develop a culture of human rights which wisely links the individual, or better, the personal aspect, to that of the common good, of the "all of us" made up of individuals, families and intermediate groups who together constitute society (3). In fact, unless the rights of each individual are harmoniously ordered to the greater good, those rights will end up being considered limitless and consequently will become a source of conflicts and violence.

To speak of transcendent human dignity thus means appealing to human nature, to our innate capacity to distinguish good from evil, to that "compass" deep within our hearts, which God has impressed upon all creation (4). Above all, it means regarding human beings not as absolutes, but as beings in relation. In my view, one of the most common diseases in Europe today is the loneliness typical of those who have no connection with others. This is especially true of the elderly, who are often abandoned to their fate, and also in the young who lack clear points of reference and opportunities for the future. It is also seen in the many poor who dwell in our cities and in the disorientation of immigrants who came here seeking a better future.

This loneliness has become more acute as a result of the economic crisis, whose effects continue to have tragic consequences for the life of society. In recent years, as the European Union has expanded, there has been growing mistrust on the part of citizens towards institutions considered to be aloof, engaged in laying down rules perceived as insensitive to individual peoples, if not downright harmful. In many quarters we encounter a general impression of weariness and aging, of a Europe which is now a "grandmother", no longer fertile and vibrant. As a result, the great ideas which once inspired Europe seem to have lost their attraction, only to be replaced by the bureaucratic technicalities of its institutions.

Together with this, we encounter certain rather selfish lifestyles, marked by an opulence which is no longer sustainable and frequently indifferent to the world around us, and especially to the poorest of the poor. To our dismay we see technical and economic questions dominating political debate, to the detriment of genuine concern for human beings (5). Men and women risk being reduced to mere cogs in a machine that treats them as items of consumption to be exploited, with the result that – as is so tragically apparent – whenever a human life no longer proves useful for that machine, it is discarded with few qualms, as in the case of the ill, the terminally ill, the elderly who are abandoned and uncared for, and children who are killed in the womb.

This is the great mistake made "when technology is allowed to take over" (6); the result is a confusion between ends and means" (7). It is the inevitable consequence of a "throwaway culture" and an uncontrolled consumerism. Upholding the dignity of the person means instead acknowledging the value of human life, which is freely given us and hence cannot be an object of trade or commerce. As members of this Parliament, you are called to a great mission which may at times seem futile: to tend to the needs, the needs of individuals and peoples. To tend to those in need takes strength and tenderness, effort and generosity in the midst of a functionalistic and privatized mindset which inexorably leads to a "throwaway culture". To care for individuals and peoples in need means protecting memory and hope; it means taking responsibility for the present with its situations of utter marginalization and anguish, and being capable of bestowing dignity upon it (8).

How, then, can hope in the future be restored, so that, beginning with the younger generation, there can be a rediscovery of that confidence needed to pursue the great ideal of a united and peaceful Europe, a Europe which is creative and resourceful, respectful of rights and conscious of its duties?

To answer this question, allow me to use an image. One of the most celebrated frescoes of Raphael is found in the Vatican and depicts the so-called "School of Athens". Plato and Aristotle are in the centre. Plato’s finger is pointed upward, to the world of ideas, to the sky, to heaven as we might say. Aristotle holds his hand out before him, towards the viewer, towards the world, concrete reality. This strikes me as a very apt image of Europe and her history, made up of the constant interplay between heaven and earth, where the sky suggests that openness to the transcendent – to God – which has always distinguished the peoples of Europe, while the earth represents Europe’s practical and concrete ability to confront situations and problems.

The future of Europe depends on the recovery of the vital connection between these two elements. A Europe which is no longer open to the transcendent dimension of life is a Europe which risks slowly losing its own soul and that "humanistic spirit" which it still loves and defends.

Taking as a starting point this opening to the transcendent, I would like to reaffirm the centrality of the human person, which otherwise is at the mercy of the whims and the powers of the moment. I consider to be fundamental not only the legacy that Christianity has offered in the past to the social and cultural formation of the continent, but above all the contribution which it desires to offer today, and in the future, to Europe’s growth. This contribution does not represent a threat to the secularity of states or to the independence of the institutions of the European Union, but rather an enrichment. This is clear from the ideals which shaped Europe from the beginning, such as peace, subsidiarity and reciprocal solidarity, and a humanism centred on respect for the dignity of the human person.

I wish, then, to reiterate the readiness of the Holy See and the Catholic Church, through the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of Europe (COMECE), to engage in meaningful, open and transparent dialogue with the institutions of the European Union. I am likewise convinced that a Europe which is capable of appreciating its religious roots and of grasping their fruitfulness and potential, will be all the more immune to the many forms of extremism spreading in the world today, not least as a result of the great vacuum of ideals which we are currently witnessing in the West, since "it is precisely man’s forgetfulness of God, and his failure to give him glory, which gives rise to violence" (9).

Here I cannot fail to recall the many instances of injustice and persecution which daily afflict religious minorities, and Christians in particular, in various parts of our world. Communities and individuals today find themselves subjected to barbaric acts of violence: they are evicted from their homes and native lands, sold as slaves, killed, beheaded, crucified or burned alive, under the shameful and complicit silence of so many.

The motto of the European Union is United in Diversity. Unity, however, does not mean uniformity of political, economic and cultural life, or ways of thinking. Indeed, all authentic unity draws from the rich diversities which make it up: in this sense it is like a family, which is all the more united when each of its members is free to be fully himself or herself. I consider Europe as a family of peoples who will sense the closeness of the institutions of the Union when these latter are able wisely to combine the desired ideal of unity with the diversity proper to each people, cherishing particular traditions, acknowledging its past history and its roots, liberated from so many manipulations and phobias. Affirming the centrality of the human person means, above all, allowing all to express freely their individuality and their creativity, both as individuals and as peoples.

At the same time, the specific features of each one represent an authentic richness to the degree that they are placed at the service of all. The proper configuration of the European Union must always be respected, based as it is on the principles of solidarity and subsidiarity, so that mutual assistance can prevail and progress can be made on the basis of mutual trust.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Members of the European Parliament, within this dynamic of unity and particularity, yours is the responsibility of keeping democracy alive, democracy for the peoples of Europe. It is no secret that a conception of unity seen as uniformity strikes at the vitality of the democratic system, weakening the rich, fruitful and constructive interplay of organizations and political parties. This leads to the risk of living in a world of ideas, of mere words, of images, of sophistry… and to end up confusing the reality of democracy with a new political nominalism. Keeping democracy alive in Europe requires avoiding the many globalizing tendencies to dilute reality: namely, angelic forms of purity, dictatorships of relativism, brands of ahistorical fundamentalism, ethical systems lacking kindness, and intellectual discourse bereft of wisdom (10).

Keeping democracies alive is a challenge in the present historic moment. The true strength of our democracies – understood as expressions of the political will of the people – must not be allowed to collapse under the pressure of multinational interests which are not universal, which weaken them and turn them into uniform systems of economic power at the service of unseen empires. This is one of the challenges which history sets before you today.

To give Europe hope means more than simply acknowledging the centrality of the human person; it also implies nurturing the gifts of each man and woman. It means investing in individuals and in those settings in which their talents are shaped and flourish. The first area surely is that of education, beginning with the family, the fundamental cell and most precious element of any society. The family, united, fruitful and indissoluble, possesses the elements fundamental for fostering hope in the future. Without this solid basis, the future ends up being built on sand, with dire social consequences. Then too, stressing the importance of the family not only helps to give direction and hope to new generations, but also to many of our elderly, who are often forced to live alone and are effectively abandoned because there is no longer the warmth of a family hearth able to accompany and support them.

Alongside the family, there are the various educational institutes: schools and universities. Education cannot be limited to providing technical expertise alone. Rather, it should encourage the more complex process of assisting the human person to grow in his or her totality. Young people today are asking for a suitable and complete education which can enable them to look to the future with hope instead of disenchantment. There is so much creative potential in Europe in the various fields of scientific research, some of which have yet to be fully explored. We need only think, for example, of alternative sources of energy, the development of which will assist in the protection of the environment.

Europe has always been in the vanguard of efforts to promote ecology. Our earth needs constant concern and attention. Each of us has a personal responsibility to care for creation, this precious gift which God has entrusted to us. This means, on the one hand, that nature is at our disposal, to enjoy and use properly. Yet it also means that we are not its masters. Stewards, but not masters. We need to love and respect nature, but "instead we are often guided by the pride of dominating, possessing, manipulating, exploiting; we do not ‘preserve’ the earth, we do not respect it, we do not consider it as a freely-given gift to look after" (11). Respect for the environment, however, means more than not destroying it; it also means using it for good purposes. I am thinking above all of the agricultural sector, which provides sustenance and nourishment to our human family. It is intolerable that millions of people around the world are dying of hunger while tons of food are discarded each day from our tables. Respect for nature also calls for recognizing that man himself is a fundamental part of it. Along with an environmental ecology, there is also need of that human ecology which consists in respect for the person, which I have wanted to emphasize in addressing you today.

The second area in which people’s talents flourish is labour. The time has come to promote policies which create employment, but above all there is a need to restore dignity to labour by ensuring proper working conditions. This implies, on the one hand, finding new ways of joining market flexibility with the need for stability and security on the part of workers; these are indispensable for their human development. It also implies favouring a suitable social context geared not to the exploitation of persons, but to ensuring, precisely through labour, their ability to create a family and educate their children.

Likewise, there needs to be a united response to the question of migration. We cannot allow the Mediterranean to become a vast cemetery! The boats landing daily on the shores of Europe are filled with men and women who need acceptance and assistance. The absence of mutual support within the European Union runs the risk of encouraging particularistic solutions to the problem, solutions which fail to take into account the human dignity of immigrants, and thus contribute to slave labour and continuing social tensions. Europe will be able to confront the problems associated with immigration only if it is capable of clearly asserting its own cultural identity and enacting adequate legislation to protect the rights of European citizens and to ensure the acceptance of immigrants. Only if it is capable of adopting fair, courageous and realistic policies which can assist the countries of origin in their own social and political development and in their efforts to resolve internal conflicts – the principal cause of this phenomenon – rather than adopting policies motivated by self-interest, which increase and feed such conflicts. We need to take action against the causes and not only the effects.

Mr President, Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Awareness of one’s own identity is also necessary for entering into a positive dialogue with the States which have asked to become part of the Union in the future. I am thinking especially of those in the Balkans, for which membership in the European Union could be a response to the desire for peace in a region which has suffered greatly from past conflicts. Awareness of one’s own identity is also indispensable for relations with other neighbouring countries, particularly with those bordering the Mediterranean, many of which suffer from internal conflicts, the pressure of religious fundamentalism and the reality of global terrorism.

Upon you, as legislators, it is incumbent to protect and nurture Europe’s identity, so that its citizens can experience renewed confidence in the institutions of the Union and in its underlying project of peace and friendship. Knowing that "the more the power of men and women increases, the greater is the individual and collective responsibility" (12), I encourage you to work to make Europe rediscover the best of itself.

An anonymous second-century author wrote that "Christians are to the world what the soul is to the body" (13). The function of the soul is to support the body, to be its conscience and its historical memory. A two-thousand-year-old history links Europe and Christianity. It is a history not free of conflicts and errors, and of sins, but one constantly driven by the desire to work for the good of all. We see this in the beauty of our cities, and even more in the beauty of the many works of charity and constructive human cooperation throughout this continent. This history, in large part, must still be written. It is our present and our future. It is our identity. Europe urgently needs to recover its true features in order to grow, as its founders intended, in peace and harmony, since it is not yet free of conflicts.

Dear Members of the European Parliament, the time has come to work together in building a Europe which revolves not around the economy, but around the sacredness of the human person, around inalienable values. In building a Europe which courageously embraces its past and confidently looks to its future in order fully to experience the hope of its present. The time has come for us to abandon the idea of a Europe which is fearful and self-absorbed, in order to revive and encourage a Europe of leadership, a repository of science, art, music, human values and faith as well. A Europe which contemplates the heavens and pursues lofty ideals. A Europe which cares for, defends and protects man, every man and woman. A Europe which bestrides the earth surely and securely, a precious point of reference for all humanity!

Thank you!

_____________________

1 JOHN PAUL II, Address to the European Parliament (11 October 1988), 5.
2 JOHN PAUL II, Address to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (8 October 1988), 3.
3 BENEDICT XVI, Caritas in Veritate, 7; Cf. SECOND VATICAN ECUMENICAL COUNCIL, Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World Gaudium et Spes, 26.
4 Cf. Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, 37.
5 Cf. Evangelii Gaudium, 55.
6 BENEDICT XVI, Caritas in Veritate, 71.
7 Ibid.
8 Cf. Evangelii Gaudium, 209.
9 BENEDICT XVI, Address to the Members of the Diplomatic Corps, 7 January 2013.
10 Evangelii Gaudium, 231.
11 FRANCIS, General Audience, 5 June 2013.
12 Cf. SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL, Gaudium et Spes, 34.
13 Cf. Letter to Diognetus, 6.

Monday, November 24, 2014

In Strasbourg, Franciscan Polity 101

Tomorrow, the first American Pope heads to the heart of Europe as Francis addresses the Continent's 751-member Parliament at Strasbourg.

Already, the last 20 months have revealed most of the key points the talk is likely to hit – a protest of the "idolatry of money" to which people are sacrificed and a call to reject the "throwaway culture" it's birthed; special pleas for the care of the young suffering under brutally high unemployment rates, an elderly population subjected to "cultural euthanasia" and migrants who risk their lives in hope of welcome; an emphasis on "dignity, not charity" for the poor, a better protection of the environment, peace amid a "Third World War" already ravaging the globe... and, well, you get the idea.

In any case, the talk is the first major speech Papa Bergoglio will give to a global policy-making body as a compendium of his secular worldview. In that, it immediately becomes a significant piece of Catholic social teaching and political theory as it's meant to be understood in the current context. And given the nuances of the still-new pontificate, beyond whether anything "new" shows up, one angle worth watching will be a comparison between the vision sketched by Francis and that of his predecessor – and, in particular, if and how much daylight exists between the two.

With an eye to said exercise, at least some will find it useful to return to B16's twin "grand lectures" on church and state in Western society: the now Pope-emeritus' 2010 manifesto in Westminster Hall during his state visit to the UK, and on his native soil the following year before the Bundestag (the German parliament) at the resurrected Reichstag in Berlin. As all but about six people have forgotten that these texts even exist, they're well worth a fresh read – they rank atop the landmark messages of Papa Ratzinger's reign and do not deserve to be left in obscurity.

As for Francis, meanwhile, until tomorrow's talk the most extensive summary the Pope has given of his social mind came in late October, at a global gathering of "popular movements" mobilized for the rights of workers, the suffering and marginalized. And once the Strasbourg speech is given, it'll likewise forerun at least two major wide-lens messages coming in 2015: the pontiff's planned encyclical on ecology – likely to emerge in the spring – and the speech to the United Nations in New York that, with a US visit now really-truly-finally-officially-confirmed for next September, will take place on the way to Philadelphia and the trek's climactic weekend.

Speaking of the Stateside swing, one invitation that awaits a response would, if accepted, make for the most historic moment of all: a papal address to a joint session of Congress – a forum John Paul II was offered, but declined on his lone stop in Washington during his first visit in 1979.

As Francis' English underwent noticeable improvement between his first public utterances in this tongue last year and the mid-August trip to Korea, well, it'd be less of a surprise if he accepts the turn than if he doesn't. For a determined, gut-driven Italian, it's simply too rich an offer to refuse.

On another front of things English, the Pope's recently-revamped geopolitical team now includes a well-placed Strasbourg vet: the newly-named "foreign minister," Archbishop Paul Gallagher, served as the Vatican's lead diplomat at the Euro chambers from 2001 until his transfer to war-torn Burundi three years later.

The speech is scheduled for 10.30am local time (same as Rome; 4.30 ET) Tuesday morning.

For The "New CDW," A New Kind of Prefect

After several weeks of rumors of an impending Curial "earthquake" – ahead of schedule, the first throes of a sweeping, Francis-driven restructuring – the Holy See released a one-line statement that "At 9.30 this morning, the Pope presided over a meeting of the dicastery heads" who comprise the church's central government.

While whatever transpired remains to emerge, the most-awaited of the expected moves has been released with today's appointment of Cardinal Robert Sarah, the 69 year-old Guinean until now in charge of the Vatican's humanitarian efforts, as the new prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. (His name having circulated for the spot over recent weeks, Sarah is seen above on a visit to the Philippines in the wake of last year's Super-Typhoon Yolanda – the catalyst behind the Pope's own planned visit in mid-January.)

Ordained a bishop at 34, in the post overseeing the global church's formal life of prayer, Sarah succeeds Cardinal Antonio Cañizares, who was returned to his native Spain – by some accounts, at his own request – in late August as archbishop of his native Valencia.

Having served as head of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum – in the coming shuffle, likely to be merged with the body for Justice and Peace – since 2010 and before that as #2 at the Propaganda Fide, not much is known about Sarah's background or expertise in matters of worship; lacking a doctorate, the cardinal's final degree was a licentiate in the Scriptures. Then again, the CDW under Francis is not expected to continue along the office's path of recent decades, which saw the congregation preside over revolutionary shifts (e.g. the sweeping re-translation of the English Missal) alongside maintaining an intense disciplinary oversight of liturgical abuses – whether real or perceived – at the local level. (As a friend once mused – perhaps only half-jokingly – during Cardinal Roger Mahony's quarter-century as archbishop of Los Angeles, CDW "had a whole wing" dedicated to handling complaints from the US' largest diocese.)

Instead, the office's new mission is likely to hew closer to Francis' own liturgical approach – as one op summarized its principles: "Go by the book. Don't make a fuss about it. And remember that liturgy's always a means to an end – not an end in itself."

Along those lines, the choice of a prefect whose ministry has been immersed in the work of charity and the perils of the missions – far removed from the boutique "liturgy wars" so beloved by polarized Anglo-European elites (whose churches aren't necessarily thriving) – serves above all as a fresh pointer to the risks, rewards and messiness of the "peripheries," the concept which remains the key to everything in this pontificate.

Returning to the wider frame of Curia reform, while Italian and Spanish media accounts have been rife with suppositions and projections of the coming state of things over recent days, the reminder's apparently in order of the degree to which Francis keeps his cards close until he's ready to break out.

Ostensibly, we'll see the full picture soon enough – after two overseas trips this week alone (a daylong trek to the European Parliament in Strasbourg tomorrow, then a three-day visit to Turkey starting Friday) – the Pope will convene his top council of nine cardinals charged with crafting the reform from 3-5 December.

If the ride so far is any indicator, you'll want to prepare for surprises.

Hying Into Chicagoland – Pope Ships Milwaukee's Don to Gary

Clearing off the top file on a drastically slimmed-down US docket, at Roman Noon this Monday the Pope named Bishop Don Hying, the 51 year-old auxiliary of Milwaukee, to lead Northwest Indiana's 200,000-member diocese of Gary.

In the church just around the Lakeshore from Chicago, Hying – seen above tending bar at a Catholic Charities fundraiser in July – succeeds Bishop Dale Melczek, the diocese's head of more than two decades, who now retires two weeks after his 76th birthday. Based in one of the nation's poorest, most violent cities, the Gary fold likewise comprises Indiana's Windy City suburbs.

Having been whisked past several more senior auxiliaries elsewhere – above all in Chicago – to receive a diocese of his own, the key to the move ostensibly lies in two of Hying's strongest suits. Given Northwest Indiana's long-significant and still growing contingent of Hispanics, both as farmworkers and in service labor, for three years between parish stints in Milwaukee, the nominee worked as a missionary pastor in the Dominican Republic.

On the other major front, after his return to Beer City and two pastorates, the future bishop formed the archdiocese's two largest ordination classes in recent memory (above) as rector of Milwaukee's St Francis de Sales Seminary from 2007-11. According to the Gary website, Hying's new charge currently has nine seminarians, including two transitional deacons.

A favorite of his former boss – now the cardinal-archbishop of New York – the appointment has the difficult side-effect of placing Francis' pick further from Mundelein, where he's studying for a D.Min.

Keeping with the norms of the canons, Hying must be installed within two months of this morning's announcement. As ever, more to come.

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

"Come, Take the Risk of Being More" – For Cupich's Chicago, A Vision of Francis' Church

HOMILY OF
THE MOST REVEREND BLASE JOSEPH CUPICH

NINTH ARCHBISHOP OF CHICAGO
MASS OF INSTALLATION
HOLY NAME CATHEDRAL
18 NOVEMBER 2014

Bienvenido, Witam, Mabuhay, Dobro došli, Welcome

I am delighted and honored to be your archbishop.

So many of you in this cathedral today have come - from near and so very far - friends and family, brother bishops and priests, religious, lay women and men. Former parishioners and pastors from Omaha, Rapid City, Spokane have joined us as well. Your being here consoles me with the hope that our friendships will continue to endure in the years ahead. Last night, I had a chance to welcome my brother bishops, and now I am pleased to greet our papal nuncio, Archbishop Viganò. We all know how demanding your schedule is, Archbishop, and so we offer our thanks to you, not only for being with us today, but for all you do to so ably represent Pope Francis, our Holy Father, who is well-loved and who makes us proud.

When it came to selecting a date for the installation, November 18 seemed to be a great fit. The Commemoration of the Dedication of the Basilicas of Saints Peter and Paul gives me a chance to recognize all immigrants, as I recall my own immigrant grandparents who helped establish my home parish of Saints Peter and Paul in Omaha. Additionally, the Church’s calendar today celebrates St. Philippine Duchesne, someone the Native People honored with the name Woman Who Prays Always. She reminds us of the extraordinary contribution women religious have made and continue to make to the church and society. I intend to honor and give thanks for all these people today, especially for family and immigrants, Native Americans and religious sisters – all of whom have shaped so much of our faith, our lives and our Church ministries.

But I have to admit, I had a bit of a panic attack when I saw the Gospel provided in the Lectionary for this day, which we have just heard. I realize this new responsibility is going to be demanding, but seriously folks, I don’t do “walking on water.” I can barely swim. So I hope this image in today’s Gospel is not reflective of anyone’s expectations.

In all honesty, what intrigues me about the readings for today, is how the Gospel and the first reading from Acts complement each other in the language and symbolism they share in common. The Gospel recounts Jesus, during his earthly life, walking on water, inviting Peter to join him, and Acts witnesses to how Paul and the Church, animated by the Spirit, following the resurrection, now cross the seas to evangelize and invite the Gentiles, all people, to encounter and to walk with the Risen Christ. That interplay of the two texts is so rich and captures something St. Leo the Great wrote centuries ago (cf., Catechism of the Catholic Church 1114- 1115).

Pope Leo remarked that everything which was visible in Jesus' words and actions during his hidden life and public ministry has passed over after Christ’s resurrection into the sacraments and the life of the Church. That truth is on full display in the readings today, to the point that the Gospel is more than an account of Jesus walking on water, more than a story of Jesus revealing his divinity to the disciples by a stunning show of power. Read alongside the story of Paul’s missionary journey, this Gospel text becomes a point of reference to understand the meaning of the resurrection, how the Risen Lord is working in our midst today, and how disciples in all ages, how the Church in our time, should view its mission.

Simply put, we are to join Christ in seeking out, inviting, and accompanying, by abiding with those to whom he sends us. Each one of those aspects of our mission, seeking out, inviting and accompanying deserves a closer look.

SEEKING OUT

Jesus’ walk across the waters is intentional. He has come to seek out and to save the troubled, those who are lost. But, this scene from Matthew’s Gospel offers us a new insight; it gives us a glimpse into what compels him to take up this mission. Jesus, we are told, has been on the mountain, in the quiet intimacy of prayer with his Father. That experience of sharing life with the Father is what moves him, prompts him to go out and seek others, so that they too may have this life. He is so driven in this mission that nothing stands in his way, not even the obstacle of crossing over water on his own. Sharing his life in the Father with us is the source of his enthusiasm and determination, is his motivation for seeking out the disciples and is the reason why he has come into the world.

We see a similar kind of drive and enthusiasm in people from time to time, where something so transformative and life giving happens to them, leaving them with no alternative but to spend their life sharing their experience with others. I have seen this kind of enthusiasm in great teachers. Their drive and incentive goes way beyond getting through the curriculum or earning a paycheck. What inspires the really good teacher is the transformative experience of insight that comes in learning. Really good teachers delight in seeing the light of discovery go on in their students’ eyes and they never pass up the chance to make that happen,
Marie Walsh was such a person. I brought her communion on First Fridays during my first years as a priest. A retired English teacher, she never passed up a chance to share her knowledge of literature and language. Marie suffered from diverticulitis, and could only take a small part of the host. One day, after giving her the Eucharist and a sip of water, she began to cough and so I said “Marie would you like to lay down.” She sharply muttered something, which I didn’t catch, and so I asked her, “Marie, what did you say?” She held the back of my neck, and with a laugh in her voice scolded me: “I said ‘chickens lay eggs; people lie down.’” She was correcting my grammar! It didn’t matter if she was in great pain or frail, she was going to make sure I spoke proper English.

We face in our day the formidable task of passing on the faith to the next generation, of evangelizing a modern and sometimes skeptical culture, not to mention inspiring young people to serve the Church as priests and religious. It all seems so daunting, as daunting as walking on water. We are at sea, unsteady in our approach faced with these concerns. Catechists and educators are on the front line of this struggle. So, too, parents and grandparents wonder if they are going to be the last Catholics in their family. Likewise bishops and priests find that the Good News is increasingly difficult to proclaim in the midst of great polarization in church and society.

Jesus tells all of us today to go back to where our journey of faith began, to be in touch with the joyful experience of being transformed by the intimacy God offers us, to be willing to share it with the next generation. Young people have always been attracted to authenticity of life, where words match deeds. Let’s not be afraid to let our young people know about our life with God and how it began. Like Marie Walsh, let’s stay close to them, so close that we can hold them by the neck, and tell them what it means for us to believe, and share with them how the Gospel has brought joy and meaning to us and transformed our lives. Such witness of personal faith many times has made the skeptic take a second look, has inspired vocations, and in my experience, animates our advocacy on behalf of human dignity with joy and compassion, purifying it of anger, harshness and fear.

The authenticity that comes in making our own baptismal calling the starting point for all we do is also demanded of me as your archbishop, particularly as I reach out to those who have been sexually abused by Church leaders. That starting point will always be needed for me and my brother bishops to keep fresh the serious duty to honor and keep the promises we made in 2002. Working together to protect children, to bring healing to victim survivors and to rebuild the trust that has been shattered in our communities by our mishandling is our sacred duty, as is holding each other accountable, for that is what we pledge to do.

INVITING

Jesus seeks out, but then he invites. “Come,” he says to Peter, “walk on the stormy waters with me.” Peter’s response is a brave act for an experienced fisherman. But, it is the kind of daring and boldness required today, the courage to leave our comfort zone and take an entirely new step in our faith journey, both personally and as a community. There is resistance in each of us to take that risk. We can be self-satisfied where we are. Pope Francis tells us that the temptation is to think and say “I’m religious enough, I’m Catholic enough, or for Church leaders to resist needed reform by claiming “we haven’t done that before” or “you cannot say that.”

We all have some anxiety and hesitancy to change, and I’ve noticed that many times in life we deal with the tension by joking about our resistance to change, to grow, to become more, beyond the minimum and enter more deeply into life with God. A friend who is a baseball fan tells me that when he thinks about getting into heaven, he is counting on being able “to slide in to home plate on a steal.”

One hot sultry day, I was boarding a plane and was struggling to put my carryon bag into the overhead bin. The people behind me weren’t happy with me holding up the line as the air- conditioning wasn’t on. Finally, the man next to me, put his bag down, took mine in hand and effortlessly shoved it in the compartment, leaving me somewhat embarrassed. Then, to my surprise he said at the top of his voice for all to hear, “Well Father, will that get me to heaven?” I was so flustered, all I could think to say was, “Gee, I hope not on this flight!”

Jesus invites us, not only to take the risk of leaving our comfort zone, but also to deal with the tension involved in change, not dismissively but in a creative way, and to challenge each other to do so. Maybe, we hear that challenge today as a call to leave behind our comforting convictions that episodic Sunday Mass attendance is good enough, that we don’t really have to change our habitual bad behavior, our unhealthy dependencies, our inordinate attachments, because we can get by as we are, because they have not gotten us into any serious trouble yet, or just because we are afraid of the unknown.

Pope Francis is giving voice to this invitation in our day, by inviting the Church to come and walk with Christ, as he is always doing something new. It is an invitation to leave behind the comfort of going the familiar way. He is challenging us to recognize that Christ is always inviting us to more, to greater things. It is the kind of invitation our bishops’ conference is making to our nation to be what it has always promised to be, to protect the vulnerable, poor and weak, to treat immigrants with justice and dignity, to respect life and to be good stewards of creation. It is the invitation of Jesus, “Come, take the risk of being more.”

ACCOMPANYING

Finally, Jesus gets into the boat. I have always thought that it took more courage for Jesus to get into that boat with those disciples than for Peter to get out of it to walk on water. There was fear, doubt, jealousy even anger in that boat – a lot of unresolved conflicts as a therapist might say.

But, it is in the incomplete, the in-between and in the brokenness of our lives where Jesus comes to share his life in the Father with us. His coming to be with us, his communion with us is not for the perfect, but is for the salvation of souls, for the lost, the forlorn, and those who are adrift. His communion is not just a quick visit, but he wants to be with us to the point of making our lives the dwelling place, the home where he and the Father abide. After going to the mountain to pray, to be with his Father, he comes into our messy lives with his Father in hand, to share our lives where we are.

It is that grace of the indwelling of the Spirit, the love of the Father and the Son, which has always been the source of real, ongoing and sustainable conversion. It is the grace of mercy, totally undeserved and unearned, that brings about real lasting change and transformation and gives life.

CONCLUSION

So, we as a Church should not fear leaving the security of familiar shores, the peacefulness of the mountaintop of our self-assuredness and walk into the mess. A military chaplain recently told me that soldiers easily know where to find him in the battle encampment because the chaplain’s tent is most often next to the medical tent.

While Pope Francis is famous for urging the Church to be a field hospital and pastors to know the smell of the sheep, Blessed Pope Paul VI expressed a similar sentiment with an inspiring message to my classmates nearly forty years ago on their day of ordination. This is what he said:

“Know how to accept as an invitation the very reproach which perhaps, and often unjustly, the world hurls against the Messenger of the Gospel. Know how to listen to the groan of the poor, the candid voice of the child, the thoughtful cry of youth, the complaint of the tired worker, the sigh of the suffering and the criticism of the thinker. But, ‘Never be afraid.’ The Lord has repeated it.” (Homily, June 29, 1975)
Of course as our papal nuncio reminded the bishops just last week, St. John Paul II began his pontificate with Christ’s comforting words to the disciples, "Do not fear." Archbishop Viganò then added: “we must not be afraid to walk with our Holy Father (Pope Francis) and to trust in the infinite value of following the Holy Spirit as our First Teacher in guiding the Church.”

That is the urging of the Word of God today. Just as Jesus left the peacefulness of his mountain top prayer to embrace the disciples in all their too human and fallible journey, so now the Church in our day is called to be faithful to its mission, the mission taken up by Paul and Peter, by putting aside her fears and the allure of false securities, and leap into the turbulent but creative waters of life in the world with the guidance of God and the charge of the Gospel.

Not being afraid is the gift that separates the disciple before and after the resurrection as we see in the responses of Peter and Paul through the readings today. Yet, it is providential that Peter experienced the terror that stormy night, for he could then uniquely witness for the Church in all ages through his successors, the power of the resurrection to vanquish all fears, disappointments, hesitations and doubts.

Peter could then witness how the resurrection is not just a past event, but an ongoing reality. He could remind us that what Jesus did in crossing the sea, he did again, by crossing from death to life, from eternity to our time, as he continues to make that crossing with us in our day. He could tell us that Jesus came back from the dead for us, to be with us. That is the reason we are not afraid – because we are not alone.

That is why now in our day Peter in his successor, Pope Francis, urges us to take up the task of crossing the seas to seek out, to invite and to accompany others, because the Risen Christ is in the boat with us.

On Installation Day, Into the Whirlwind

The Ninth Archbishop hasn’t taken his chair yet... but already, change is afoot in Chicago – as Black Church classics filled Holy Name Cathedral before last night’s prayer service, a rather amazed friend sidled up to observe that “We’ve never had Gospel music here before.”

Shock though that was, given Blase Cupich’s background in liturgical theology, the ritual choices were anything but an accident. That “All Are Welcome” – the anthem of inclusion equally beloved by progressives and abhorred by more traditional folks – marked his first trip up the aisle was an even more pointed signal, as was the reinforcement of his homily when the African-American spiritual "Them Dry Bones" was sung as the recessional.

As the Chicago clergy packed the pews – while, outside, a phalanx of bundled-up police shut down the surrounding streets on a blustery, bitterly cold evening – the scene before the door-knock felt more than a little like New Year’s Eve as the anticipation built. Then again, rare is the holiday party that sees Rahm Emanuel casually working the pews by himself, no security in sight.

While the prolonged, clearly heartfelt ovations that washed over an ailing Cardinal Francis George were all the more poignant coming from a famously independent presbyterate with which he's often been at loggerheads, the tensions of the last 17 years were evident nonetheless in the nickname for Cupich quietly circulating among the brothers: "Archbishop Rolaids," so dubbed as he's felt to be bringing "relief."

Only once the service wrapped up did the ultimate sign of the change of command take place as workers removed the carving of the cardinal's coat of arms from above the cathedra's place in the center of the sanctuary. The successor's shield wasn't immediately hung in its place.

* * *

Before eight cardinals, some 105 bishops, parish representatives and a "tribe" of family and friends who've converged from Rome, Washington, Omaha, South Dakota, Spokane and beyond, the Installation Mass begins at 2pm Central.

In testimony to the enduring clout of the archbishop and the church he leads in this Windy City, all five of Chicago's major TV stations are running the Mass live and commercial-free, so the streaming will abound (and, of course, one of them will be placed here at the hour). Already, the graphics and packages that've rolled out through the transition are more in keeping with a royal wedding or presidential inauguration than the arrival of a shepherd.

Notably, such is the demand for seating in Holy Name that priests who hadn't indicated their attendance by last week were told there'd be no room for them. As previously relayed, not until tomorrow will the new archbishop meet the 600-plus permanent deacons – the largest diocesan contingent of the order in the global church – at one of two prayer services for the constituencies who serve the 2.3 million Catholics of the nation's third-largest diocese.

In a small, private gathering just prior to today's Mass, the complete civil ownership of the archdiocese's $3 billion in assets will fall to Cupich when, before a judge, he makes his declaration of office as "The Catholic Bishop of Chicago, A Corporation Sole," thus inheriting the most centralized and complex apparatus in the American church. (Because of the legal arrangement – one which, for the last several decades, the Holy See has urged US dioceses to move away from – Cupich has reluctantly admitted to friends that "I'll never drive a car again" as being at the wheel in an auto accident could put the archdiocese's holdings at stake.)

Several minutes later, on being taken to the chair, it is extremely telling that the archbishop has chosen to receive the crozier of an earlier George – the legendary Mundelein, the last non-archbishop named to the post 99 years ago, whose quarter-century tenure as the first "Cardinal of the West" transformed Chicago Catholicism, creating both the Americanized ethos and institutional behemoth which remain its defining traits into the present.

As for what the choice of insignia entails for the next chapter, beyond last night's preach, what's been termed a "monumental" homily will provide our first in-depth glimpse. That said, the first parish on Cupich's calendar is of keen significance – on Sunday, the new arrival will head straight into the "belly of the beast" by visiting St Agatha's: the poor, largely African-American community that was the last assignment of Daniel McCormack, the predator priest whose 2006 arrest spurred a tide of settlements amid disclosures of over 20 victims.

Monday, November 17, 2014

As prepared for delivery, below is the fulltext and video of Blase Cupich's homily in Holy Name Cathedral at tonight's prayer service on the vigil of his installation as the Ninth Archbishop of Chicago.

* * *

It is only polite to begin with an expression of gratitude for the warm welcome I have just received in such a personal way from various representative officials of church and state. But before I do that, I ask your kind understanding as I attend to the important and happy task of publicly recognizing the dedicated service to the Church and to this City, of a native son of Chicago, who has distinguished himself both here and abroad as our Bishop’s Conference President, who always responded with a generosity that motivates and inspires and who has been unfailingly gracious and cordial to me, especially in these days. The Provincial of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate put it well in a recent letter to his confreres, “we are grateful for Cardinal George’s prophetic ministry in favor of the sanctity of life and dignity of the poor and marginalized. He has faced a broad spectrum of issues...and in doing so he has always brought great intelligence, insight, strong conviction and a pastoral heart to every issue and situation.” And so, on behalf of all of us, all those whose faith and lives have been enriched by your witness and your ministry, I want my first words on this occasion to be “thank you Cardinal Francis George.”

All of you have warmly greeted me, elected officials, public servants, community leaders and diplomats, ecumenical and interfaith representatives, archdiocesan brothers and sisters representing ethnic groups, various offices and committees, religious women and men, and my own brother bishops and brother priests of Chicago. I am grateful for your welcome to this city and to this cathedral. In fact, I feel so much at home here that now I in turn welcome you not only to this cathedral, but into my heart. That is the kind of greeting I have learned from the Lakota people in South Dakota, whose welcome always comes as an exchange from one heart to another.

We are honored to have our Holy Father Pope Francis with us in the person of our Apostolic Nuncio, Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò. Welcome Archbishop and thank you for taking time from your demanding schedule to be with us. He is joined by other brother bishops from across this country and the world. All of your obligations are terribly exacting, especially at this time of the year, and my welcome to you comes with a sincere thanks for the heartwarming gift of fraternal support your presence means to all of us.

Finally, I welcome my family, my eight brothers and sisters and spouses, nephews and nieces, and extended family members, who for the most part are occupying this entire right side of the Cathedral!

"THE AGENDA”

On Saturday, September 20, the day my appointment by Pope Francis was announced, the first question at the news conference was: “What’s your agenda? What are your priorities? What’s the first thing you want to accomplish?”

I really wanted to respond: “Getting through this news conference!”

But, as for my agenda, if I have learned anything over these past four decades as a pastor, I know it is a disaster for me to have my own agenda. That is not because I don’t have dreams and hopes, or that I want to ignore the challenges and trials of life. Rather it is because I have learned that my agenda is always too small; it’s prone to be self-serving, and ultimately unworthy of the people I am called to serve. No, the agenda has to be God’s, which is beyond our imagining and our abilities. And unlike our priorities, God’s agenda has staying power, it endures.

We see that kind of divine agenda occupying the attention of Ezekiel, a prophet who oftentimes addresses the leaders of the people, pressing them to be attentive to how God is working in the world, so that they can also join in the restoration, the building up and bringing life to the people they serve.

This night, Ezekiel speaks of God’s work in the dryness that not infrequently afflicts human existence. His immediate concern is to inspire new life in the people living in exile, by offering a vision of the new city to be built by God. They have suffered the humiliating defeat by Babylon and the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple. The people are scattered and disconnected, with hopes broken and barren. They are like dry bones strewn carelessly to rot in an abandoned field under the scorching sun of oppression.

While the circumstances may be different, this kind of dryness is present in our modern times, a dryness that eats away at our hopes and leaves us disoriented. It is the dryness elderly and sick persons can experience when their strength gives way and their bones become unsteady, to the point that they begin to question their worth, their sense of purpose and even the faith that has heretofore directed their lives. We see that dryness caked on the faces of the homeless street people, in the fatigue of the underemployed worker cobbling together three or four low paying jobs to make ends meet, but also in the hectic pace of the successful business owner whose long hours in the office leave little time for family meals and sharing, for rest and recreation.

T. S. Elliot captures all of this so well in his epic poem, The Wasteland, where he describes how our modern lives easily become:

"A heap of broken images, where the sun beats,
And the dead tree gives no shelter, the cricket no relief, And the dry stone no sound of water.”
All that’s left is “fear in a handful of dust,” and a life “in rats' alley / where the dead men lost their bones".

We, who are public servants, pastors, leaders know well this kind of dryness that ails the human soul and fatigues both body and spirit. We come face to face with it in the service to our citizens and the ministry to our parishioners.

But, we who serve in public life as leaders also experience our own dryness, in the tedium of attending to administrative details, which most often go unnoticed or unappreciated, in the frustration we feel as we are called upon to face enormous challenges with limited energies and shrinking resources, and whenever opportunities for real improvement are squandered by petty squabbles and divisive discourse. We both as church and civic leaders know that kind of dryness. Like Ezekiel we can look over the landscape of our life and service and lament, “how dry these bones are.”

But, the prophet draws our attention to this rather bleak scene, not to chastise or criticize, to dishearten or discourage. Rather, by crisscrossing, north and south, east and west through the vast field of dry and scattered bones, this representative, this voice of God, is consoling us with the message that the Lord of Creation, is with us, is walking through this dryness with us, the dryness we face each and every day as leaders.

And so, let us for a moment walk together with Ezekiel tonight and listen attentively as he encourages us with the three words he speaks: Spirit, People and Land – three words of comfort, words to encourage, words to help us keep our focus on all that God is doing, so that our ways may be God’s ways.

SPIRIT

What should not go unnoticed as Ezekiel speaks in the Spirit over the dry bones is that there is still a responsiveness, a receptivity, a sensitivity in this lifeless heap of bones. There is still something that remains, beyond the dryness and death that has smothered these dismembered skeletons. All that is needed is for the prophet, the leader in their midst, to speak in a way that inspires, to speak to the deep yearnings of the people we serve, because it is God who is keeping alive their legitimate aspirations, even when there seems to be no hope. That is why it should be beneath our dignity as leaders to speak in ways that appeal to the fears and anxieties of people rather than the hopes and yearnings God has planted in their hearts.

And when it comes to speaking to each other in moments of deep disagreement, this does not mean that we should shy away from stating our position or making our point. “We cannot engage in real dialogue unless we are conscious of our own identity,” as Pope Francis reminds us. But then he adds: “Nor can there be authentic dialogue unless we are capable of opening our minds and hearts, in empathy and sincere receptivity, to those with whom we speak....We are challenged to listen not only to the words which others speak, but to the unspoken communication of their experiences, their hopes and aspirations, their struggles and their deepest concerns...If our communication is not to be a monologue, there has to be openness of heart and mind to accepting individuals and cultures.”
That is a message for all of us, for me, for my brother priests working in parishes and other ministries, and for elected officials and public servants.

But, civil discourse is needed not just so we can get something done for the common good, but because of the impact that failing to do so has on society.

Recent studies on the involvement of young people in religion and public life bear out a common factor that discourages their participation – the harsh rhetoric and lack of comity and civility within each group and in the way leaders in both groups treat each other. A good friend of mine, who is with us tonight, advised me when I became a seminary rector, to place a high priority on developing a faculty, a team that modeled to students how adults should act. As Msgr. Lawrence Purcell, former rector of the North American College put it, “you will teach them more about a collaborative model of ministry in this way than anything you say.”

It is not surprising that parishioners, citizens and the public become uneasy and disaffected with community and public life when they see leaders speak in ways that incite fears rather than inspire hope. There is collateral damage in such tactics. But, there is an even greater promise of really accomplishing something that lasts, done by God’s grace, when we speak with the deliberate and unified aim of bringing dry bones to life. Such a commitment to civil and respectful discourse is about meeting God half way as He keeps the aspirations of those we serve alive in the struggles they face in life.

PEOPLE

Ezekiel also invites us to look for where God is working to build up the people. Notice that the spirit evoked brings about a rattling of the bones, not to assemble skeletons as individuals, but as a vast army. There is a dryness in many people’s lives because they have little experience of being connected in society. For them, the only economy that counts is one that depends on connections they never had and never will. So many are left unconnected because of poverty spread across generations, racism or not having mentors to guide and inspire them about the value of education, hard work, and the self-discipline needed for personal stability.

Already in the short time I have been here, I have been edified by the great work so many of you are doing through various charities, apostolates, labor unions, the business community, government programs, schools, volunteer and civic groups and you should be encouraged to know that helping people get connected, experience being a part of society, is where God is active, working and gracing you in your dedicated ministry and labors. You are using your connections to help those disconnected and that is the work of God.

Our aim should be to make sure that everyone has a place at the table of life, the mother needing prenatal and postnatal care and protection for herself and her child, the former inmate seeking a fresh start, the drug addict who needs someone to help her take one day at a time, the father and mother who want their children to have the educational opportunities other families have – this is the vast army God is inviting us to raise up with him.
Central governments in the Church and the state have enormous power to create bonds, stimulate cooperation and motivate people to work together on the local level. That has always been my approach, seeing the diocesan offices as being at the service of our parishes, to animate them while uniting and building bonds among ourselves as one local Church.

LAND

The Hebrew term Ha Aretz, is not just about real estate, turf, or dirt, but it refers to the land on which God’s people live with stability, and a sense of belonging. God’s desire to bring about this sense of belonging is present in the aspirations of every migrant and immigrant, and that is why they need to be respected, treated with justice and welcomed. God is at work in giving people a life of stability, a feeling of being at home, and of living in an environment that satisfies the desires God has placed in their hearts. The work of comprehensive immigration reform is not important because it is on my agenda, but because it is on God’s.

But, there are others who feel little sense of belonging and stability. Many youth have no dreams, no real aspirations, no sustaining hope. And so they turn to a destructive world of drugs, gangs, and lethal violence.
There are no easy answers to this, but I am aware that good people within our parishes and in the city are working imaginatively to address this issue. I admire the creativity of bringing gang members together for sports and in other venues to ease growing tensions. I believe that shoring up and strengthening family life and education are also essential ingredients.

You will find in me a ready partner, but also one who believes that this work is not inconsequential, is not an option, because again, it too is on God’s agenda.

CONCLUSION

For me it is quite humbling as I come to offer servant leadership to this local Church to be associated with lay women and men, clergy, religious and bishops who continue to have an enormous impact in society. That is especially so as I now follow two great predecessors, Cardinal Bernardin and Cardinal George, both intellectual and spiritual leaders, but most of all pastoral men who both have been models of faith and trust in God in having to deal with serious illness as they valiantly continued to shepherd the people of God.

But, it is also true that United States has benefitted from the talents and leadership of many Chicagoans over our nation’s history, contributing common sense Midwestern values in touch with the real lives of people. We are a city that is unafraid to walk through the dry bones.

Tonight Ezekiel encourages us to continue doing so because that is where God is and where God’s agenda begins. It is an agenda that encourages me as I begin my service to welcome new friendships with other leaders in our parishes, in the business community, labor and government, because I recognize the enormous opportunity and promise that God is putting before us as we use our connections to help the disconnected, all the while respecting each other’s challenges.

It is an agenda that has its origins in the very creation of the world, for God’s plan all along has been to make this tiny speck of cosmic dust in the vast universe a land, a home for us all.

Spirit, People and Land – these are God’s words to comfort and encourage, words to help us in this graced time and blessed city to keep our focus on all that God is doing, so that our ways may be God’s ways.

And, the promise tonight is that if we keep these three words close to our hearts, all the while remembering our proud heritage of contributing to the good of the nation, then not only will we get things done, but we will probably end up rattling some bones.

The Blase Begins

Back to the main story of the moment, even if Francis himself isn't touching down at O'Hare today, over these next 30 hours The Revolution he's driving will take hold in its most potent form on these shores as Blase Cupich is installed as the Ninth Archbishop of Chicago – for the helm of the nation's third-largest diocese, the most significant personnel pick Papa Bergoglio will have among the American hierarchy's top rank.

As the world awaits the very significant homilies to come at tonight's Liturgy of the Word and tomorrow's Installation Mass, we'd be remiss to not start in without the talk that arguably aligned the stars toward the stunning move – the then-Spokane bishop's June response (text) to Francis' "Vice-Pope" at a Washington symposium on the conflict between libertarianism and Catholic social teaching.

After a year of all-but-formal word, it's finally official – in his opening talk this morning to an all-star conference on the defense of marriage arranged by the CDF, the Pope announced that he was "happy to confirm that, God willing, in September 2015 I will go to Philadelphia for the eighth World Meeting of Families."

Its first edition in North America, the Vatican's global event for the domestic church was awarded to the roiled River City empire in June 2012 by Benedict XVI amid his final months in office to serve as an encouragement to a famously-devoted flock that was – and, indeed, remains – blown out of the water amid seismic revelations of sex-abuse and the Chancery response to it, on top of massive parish and school closings and a long-term deficit that, at its worst, reached into the range of $300 million. While Archbishop Charles Chaput OFM Cap. has made significant headway in tackling the most daunting set of challenges an American prelate's faced in the last half-century, a sweeping reboot of attitudes and structures alike will still take some years to be fully achieved.

Slated to take over the Pennsylvania Convention Center for the bulk of its events, the World Meeting – for which registration was recently opened – will culminate with Francis' presence over the long weekend of 25-28 September. A full schedule for the days is only expected to emerge from Rome over the spring at the earliest. In the meantime, Francis will be visiting Turkey over US' Thanksgiving Weekend, and addressing the European Parliament in Strasbourg next Tuesday before embarking on a weeklong pilgrimage to Sri Lanka and the Philippines – his second to Asia – in mid-January.

As reported here long ago, the expected itinerary of Jorge Bergoglio's first-ever US trek is likewise a near-lock to include Washington and New York – and with them, a very possible leg in Mexico – before the pontiff heads back to Rome to open the Ordinary Synod on the Family, which will conclude the global church's two-year process of discernment on its pastoral response to the situations faced by today's faithful in their lived experience.

While Round Two in the Aula will begin a week after Francis' final Mass in Philly, for a Universal Pastor who explicitly abhors the notion of "a bishop behind bulletproof glass," the most colorful discussions of all might just come about between the Vatican advance team and the Secret Service, who've historically been more paranoid about guarding the Roman Pontiff on Stateside soil than even the President.

Perhaps most historically of all, meanwhile, for a Pope who seems more attached to the embattled predecessor he recently beatified than any other, it is deeply telling that Francis' first voyage to the US and UN will come a week before the 50th anniversary of Blessed Paul VI's 13-hour trek to New York on St Francis' Day 1965.

Of course, that was the first papal voyage to North America. And now, the journey will be repeated by the first American Pope.

For Chicago and Beyond, "The Resolute Urgency of Now"

Thirty-two years ago, John Paul II's bull appointing Joseph Bernardin as archbishop of Chicago famously called the place "maxima" – "the greatest" – a nod to the near-century for which the Windy City church reigned as Stateside Catholicism's largest outpost.

On hearing the line proclaimed during the rites at Holy Name, a certain disgruntled cardinal was said to have exclaimed "Maxima forsa sed non optima" – "The largest, maybe, but not the best."

At least, that was the story as Pio Laghi told it. And now, all these years later, it is a surreal twist of history that – even if Chicago is no longer the "maxima" among us – a very different Pope has chosen Laghi's favorite son as his own "optima": barring the unforeseen, the most consequential choice Francis will place in the American hierarchy's top rank.

If you love or simply just respect this beat and what it represents, we've come to a moment as moving as it's meaningful in the life of the nation's largest religious body, its influence all the more palpable in the nation's third-largest city: a place where The Archbishop – in time, again The Cardinal – is outranked in public clout only by its Mayor.... After all, this is the turf where a half-century of chief shepherds made their rounds in the car marked with Illinois License Plate "1."

Bearing the blunt object he's termed a "hammer," Blase Cupich hits the doors of Holy Name Cathedral at 7 tonight to announce his entrance at the seat of the 2.4 million-member archdiocese, thus opening a new chapter in the life of this local church and the wider fold beyond.

While Tuesday's Installation Mass will be amply broadcast and streamed far and wide, this evening's kickoff Liturgy of the Word – featuring the welcome from ecumenical and civic leaders alike and a message geared to the presbyterate – won't.

That said, fear not – your Whispers will be on-hand to witness the moment and cover it around, along with the rest of these days. As always, though, the work simply could not happen without this readership's support – and if you don't, well, then I can't....

Between last week in Baltimore and the days to come, you can probably imagine how the house has dived into the kind of red ink that would've made Mundelein's head explode (and we don't have the luxury of bond issues). Still, if news is going to be the name of the game here, the nature of this moment requires the investment for the sake of the product. And if the result means something to you, then I'm gonna need your help with pulling it off without going bankrupt.

Lastly, there is almost too much to work with here – at least, for one brain to process and try to beam out while taking it all in. Then again, this is the easy part – we get to watch, but somebody else has to do the job. So as the shadow of Peter now falls on the Ninth Archbishop in the form of a herculean, thankless task, we'd all do well to pray for the "Thunder" sent to rekindle this house for a new generation... and right with him, the epic, venerable, unforgettable genius now embarking on a role as unique and pioneering as his mind: the first native son to lead his home-diocese, soon to become the first-ever Archbishop-emeritus of Chicago.

Lest anyone forgot, Church, everything is grace... and may these days be an outpouring of It and more for the City of Big Shoulders, and the rest of us looking in from near and far alike.

Archbishop, the time for shock is over – time to lead now, Blase... and above all, to believe, that the rest of us can too.

Thursday, November 13, 2014

Fisher of Men – In Sydney, This Is The Day The George Has Made

It's been said here before, but bears repeating – this week sees the arrivals of the twin appointees likely to be Francis' most significant English-speaking picks in the course of his entire pontificate... and fittingly, the festival began with quite a splash.

In spectacular fashion, yesterday in Sydney saw the homecoming of the city's Ninth Archbishop. And given all the expectation that's surrounded Anthony Fisher for a decade, that the promise would pay off at the tender age of 54 only added to the palpable sense of history in St Mary's Cathedral, as a phalanx of Australia's leaders joined Fisher's parents and a teeming standing-room crowd to witness the beginning of a tenure that could extend to the year 2040. Indeed, that the cathedra of Oz's preeminent post is a replica of King Edward's Chair – the coronation seat of the British monarchs in Westminster Abbey – merely added to the perception of triumph.

After prayers (right) at the tomb of St Mary MacKillop – the foundress who, in 2010, became the first Australian to be canonized – the Dominican friar-cum-Oxford bioethicist was swept by car to the country's most prominent house of worship, where he was greeted on the front steps by a delegation led by Aboriginal representatives. (Unlike installations in the US, Canada and Britain, the Mass notably began at 7pm local time for the convenience of the faithful who wanted to come.) Much like Fisher's combination of sweeping intellect and boyish charm, meanwhile, the liturgy that followed had something for everybody, as fanfares and chant were mixed with guitar-driven praise and worship music.

Despite a decade-long rise through the hierarchy as his predecessor's star protege, Fisher has conspicuously sought to distance himself from Cardinal George Pell over the rollout for his arrival, and the Vatican's new, all-powerful Finance Czar was just as strikingly absent from the event. Still, beyond the choice himself, the long arm of Francis was reinforced in the room by the front-and-center presence of Archbishop Paul Gallagher, the beloved British-born Nuncio now preparing to depart for Rome as the Pope's newly-chosen "foreign minister," again becoming the first native English-speaker ever to hold the critical post.

Over recent days, it's been extraordinary to hear the level of enthusiasm and support with which a normally cynical and raucously irreverent Aussie crowd has showered Fisher (shown above with his mother) over the course of the transition – and to be sure, maybe even more of the same surrounds Blase Cupich as he arrives in Chicago today to complete his journey to the chair of Mundelein, Bernardin and George. Keeping to Sydney, though, the state of its local church has been put in glaring, even visceral terms – to use one well-placed perception, the 700,000-member archdiocese "is a basketcase, and [its] priests are the walking wounded" – all the more as an ongoing Federal inquiry into institutional sex-abuse has put the church's historic response to cases under a high-profile microscope across Australia.

On practically every front, the scene set a high bar for an inaugural message, but the Oz crowd has routinely cited Fisher as one of the finest preachers they've got... and in the potent homily he turned out, it showed – video and fulltext are below, and the complete Mass is streaming on-demand via the Catholic social media portal Xt3.

* * *

HOMILY OF THE MOST REVEREND ANTHONY FISHER, OP

MASS OF INSTALLATION OF THE NINTH ARCHBISHOP OF SYDNEY
ST MARY'S CATHEDRAL
12 NOVEMBER 2014

Other political, judicial, professional and education leaders; brothers and sisters in Christ:

I

When Father John Joseph Therry named the first Catholic chapel of the colony of New South Wales "St. Mary, Help of Christians," he chose a title that marks the intersection and sometimes collision of three great ideas that shape the human soul in our age: Christianity, Islam and secularism.

In the sixteenth century, amid serious tension between Christianity and Islam (in the form of the Holy League and the Ottoman empire), Pope St. Pius V called on Europe to pray the Rosary for peace and security. In the nineteenth century, when secularism (in the form of the French Revolution and Napoleon) also sought to smother the Church, Pope Pius VII called for the same. Two centuries ago this very year, he was liberated and the Church again survived against the odds. The next year he introduced the commemoration of "Help of Christians" to the calendar, and adding one more to that long line of Marian titles that began in tonight's Gospel with Elizabeth calling Mary "Mother of my Lord" and "Most Blessed of all women" (Luke 1:39-56).

Much might be said about these three cousins - Christianity, Islam and secularism, their family resemblances, differences and tensions. Extremist strains of each have sometimes threatened the security of the others; at other times they've coexisted peaceably and collaborated in various ways.

As a Catholic bishop I profess faith in the person of Jesus Christ. His Gospel is heir to much of Judaism and became the basis of a new Western civilization and a great missionary endeavour to bring faith and worship, education and healthcare, welfare and pastoral care, to the ends of the earth, even as far as colonial Australia. But as we heard in our first reading tonight, the Woman of the Apocalypse that is Israel, the Church, the Virgin Mother, has not always had it easy, even when bringing forth the Prince of Peace (Revelation 11:19; 12:1-6, 10).

The infant Church in Australia had a special reason to honour Mary: in the years when Catholic priests and Masses were forbidden, the laity kept the Faith alive by public recitation of the Rosary. The first Catholic church - which became the cathedral once Bishop John Bede Polding arrived in 1835 - was built with the pennies of poor Irish and British Catholics, but also the assistance of that enlightened Governor, Macquarie, and some Protestant worthies. It is an early example of respect for religious liberty, of collaboration between church and state, and of harmony between believers.

These are, I believe, among our nation's greatest strengths and the presence tonight of diverse political and religious leaders is testament to that. We must be eternally vigilant to protect these aspects of our national life. To people of other faiths or none I hold out the hand of friendship and collaboration, and to those suffering at home or abroad for their faith I commit to working for peace and harmony.

II

Sydney's first bishops were Benedictines; I am a Dominican. My order was founded eight centuries ago "for preaching and the salvation of souls." The early friars were rather ambivalent about their own becoming bishops. When the Dominican scientist-theologian St. Albert the Great was named Bishop of Regensburg, the Master of the Dominicans, Humbert of Romans, wrote:

"I would rather you were dead than a bishop ... Why ruin your reputation and that of the Order by letting yourself be taken away from poverty and preaching? However troublesome you find the brethren, don't imagine things will be better once you have secular clergy and powers to deal with ... Better to lie in a coffin than sit in a bishop's chair!"
Paul in our epistle anticipates and answers Humbert, reminding us that Christ graces some to be apostles or evangelists, others to be pastors or teachers - some, like himself, to be all these things - but all "speaking the truth in love" and so building up the Church (Ephesians 4:1-16).

The responsibility of the pastor is a grave one in any age, but in our time that has been aggravated by the shameful deeds of some clergy and serious failures of some leaders to respond. I have personally found it harrowing as a bishop to listen to survivors tell me their stories, to hear how abandoned they felt and how they continue to suffer.

To survivors of abuse and all affected I say: the Church is - I am - profoundly sorry for what happened. All young people must be cherished and protected. The Church can do better and I am committed to giving a lead in this area. I pray that the Church will emerge from this period of public scrutiny humbler, more compassionate and spiritually regenerated. Only then will we regain credibility and trust in many people's eyes. To those who've become disconnected from the Church in recent years because of our failures or for some other reason I say: come back home, give us another chance, and help us be a better Church. We need your insights, enthusiasm and prayers.

III

When the newly-pregnant Mary greeted her kinswoman, the Gospel relates that the child leapt in Elizabeth's womb. Poets have the foetal John the Baptist doing somersaults for joy at the coming of the Saviour; iconographers have him leaping into kneeling position; either way, it can't have been very comfortable for his Mum! But the scene captures the excitement we all should feel at encountering Jesus Christ. Already this unborn boy glimpsed his vocation as a finger pointing to Christ.

It took me rather longer to grasp! As a child in the Lakemba and Lane Cove parishes in Cardinal Gilroy's time, our class was given Brother Davy's The Christian Gentleman, with a preface by the Cardinal. Its advice on etiquette with Governors, Premiers and Nuncios seemed of little relevance - little did I know! Through my adolescence at Riverview and Sydney University, Cardinal Freeman was archbishop and he washed my feet one Holy Thursday night; I never dreamt I'd one day be washing the feet here - a reminder that I am "to serve, not to be served" (John 13:1-17; Matthew 20:25-28).

As a young cleric in Sydney and Melbourne in Cardinal Clancy's time, I never guessed I would one day stand on the shoulders of those great men, all the way back to Polding. I gratefully salute our recently-deceased father, Ted Clancy. I likewise acknowledge Cardinal George Pell, whose auxiliary I was for seven years and who before his appointment to Rome achieved so much in education, chaplaincies and seminaries, in centres for formation, retreat and pilgrimage, and through the Sydney World Youth Day with which I was privileged to be associated.

What a joy to return in this new way! I've lived or worked in the South-West of Sydney and the lower North Shore, the upper North, inner city and the East, and lately the West of this great city. I love its people. Pope Francis says pastors should smell of their sheep. This is not a comment upon clerical hygiene: it is an insistence that we are from and for our flocks. Pray, therefore, that I will always be a shepherd for Sydney after the heart of Jesus Christ.

IV

Tonight I've looked back to the origins of this cathedral, diocese and national church. Looking forward, we have much to build on. Above all, we have Jesus Christ as our foundation stone and the many works inspired by His Spirit over the past two centuries.

The Church in Australia now has around 10,000 hospital beds, 20,000 aged care places, 700,000 school desks, and assists countless people through parishes, CatholicCare and St. Vincent de Paul. 5.5 million Catholics, in 1300 parishes and every walk of life, contribute in myriad ways to our nation. Peaceful democracies, affluent economies and cohesive societies don't just happen: they depend upon a complex of ideals, practices and institutions and in this country these are largely a Judeo-Christian inheritance, however under-appreciated that often is. There is much to be done to renew that social capital and I commit the Church in Sydney to that task.

What will this Archdiocese look like when, God willing, I retire in 2035? My hope is for a Church in which the Gospel is preached with joy, the wisdom of our tradition mined with fidelity, the sacraments celebrated with dignity and welcome, and the seminaries, convents and youth groups teeming with new life; a Church in which our parishes, chaplaincies and educational institutions are true centres of the new evangelisation, our laity theologically literate and spiritually well-formed, our outreach to the needy effective and growing, and God glorified above all. That will depend hugely on three factors: our clergy and religious; our families; and our young people. Let me conclude with a brief word to each.

Despite demoralising revelations from the past and exhausting demands in the present, we are still served today by many generous priests, holy religious and courageous seminarians and I greet those of the Archdiocese tonight with great optimism and fondness. It is a privilege to join you labouring in this vineyard. It is my hope that many new labourers will join us going forward. I pledge myself tonight to pray with you and for you, to listen and learn from you, to lead and support you as father as best I can, and work with you as brother in our joint mission.

Tonight I also promise to devote myself to supporting marriage and family at a time when this crucial institution is much misunderstood and under such pressure. I am the first Archbishop of Sydney lucky enough to have both parents present at his installation and I thank God for the love and support of Colin and Gloria these fifty-five years past. It was in their domestic church that first I heard the Gospel of life and love. With all my heart I thank them, my siblings and the rest of my family and friends, for loving me so well, and being willing to share me now with a new family of about 600,000 Catholics in the Archdiocese.

I also greet those lay faithful, including my collaborators in parishes, schools, universities and agencies. St. John Paul II called you to be prophets of truth, agents of a new evangelization for a new millennium. Pope Benedict XVI called you to be objects of beauty, like precious gems refracting the glory of God and drawing all eyes to Him. And now Pope Francis calls you to be exemplars of goodness, "missionary disciples" like Mary reaching out to her cousin and our suffering world, showing all "the mercy promised to our ancestors." With her namesake St. Mary MacKillop, you must make it your special care to transmit that faith and mercy to the young.

And to those young people of Sydney, I say with special affection: open your hearts to the adventure of the Gospel. In my bull of appointment you heard tonight the Holy Father refer to you as spes Ecclesiae, "the hope of the Church." I am depending on you to lend me all your energy and idealism. Never buy the lies that nothing is true, all is relative, your ideals illusory, your good works in vain. With God on your side, my young friends, who can be against you?

Tonight's celebration takes us back to the days of Therry and Polding, through subsequent generations, to that youthful Church still emerging in this third millennium of grace. As I take up this new charge, I ask you all to reflect upon your personal calling to build up the Church and community. Join me in saying a Marian YES, unconditionally, to God. With St. Mary Help of Christians let our souls magnify the Lord and our spirits rejoice in God our Saviour. For the Almighty works marvels for us: Holy is His name!

About Me

One of global Catholicism's most prominent chroniclers, Rocco Palmo has held court as the "Church Whisperer" since 2004, when the pages you're reading were launched with an audience of three, grown since by nothing but word of mouth, and kept alive throughout solely by means of reader support.

A former US correspondent for the London-based international Catholic weekly The Tablet, he's been a church analyst for The New York Times, Associated Press, Washington Post, Reuters, Los Angeles Times, BBC, NBC, CNN and NPR among other mainstream print and broadcast outlets worldwide.

A native of Philadelphia, Rocco Palmo attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. In 2010, he received a Doctorate of Humane Letters honoris causa from Aquinas Institute of Theology in St Louis.

In 2011, Palmo co-chaired the first Vatican conference on social media, convened by the Pontifical Councils for Culture and Social Communications. By appointment of Archbishop Charles Chaput OFM Cap., he's likewise served on the first-ever Pastoral Council of the Archdiocese, whose Church remains his home.